Huckabee Bumbles Three Times In One Sentence, Compounds His Cluelessness On The Iran NIE
Huckabee Bumbles Three Times In One Sentence, Compounds His Cluelessness On The Iran NIE
On Tuesday night, when former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) was asked what he thought of the new National Intelligence Estimate on Iran, he said that he had neither “been briefed” on nor “heard of the finding” that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003.
Not much has changed apparently. On MSNBC’s Morning Joe this morning, Huckabee tried to dismiss criticism of his “ignorance of the news of the day” with a joke, but only managed to compound his cluelessness:
SHUSTER: But it gets to the idea that being governor of Arkansas is not necessarily best sort of foreign policy experience and that something that I think a lot of your critics are aiming at your direction. How do you respond to them?
HUCKABEE: Well, I don’t blame my staff. It is a situation where a report was released at 10:00 in the morning, the president hadn’t seen it in four years and I’m supposed to see it four hours later.
Huckabee then called it “a gotcha question” at a dinner full of reporters. Watch it:
In his attempt at a humor-driven dismissal, Huckabee revealed he still doesn’t know much about the NIE.
1) The NIE was released the previous day, not that morning. The NIE was released to the public in the early afternoon on Monday, December 3rd. The dinner where Huckabee was asked about the NIE took place on the evening of Tuesday, Decemeber 4th.
2) Huckabee had more than “four hours.” According to the timeline above, Huckabee could have learned about the NIE anytime overnight or during the course of the next day if he had picked up a newspaper. Hotline notes, on the same day Huckabee said he hadn’t heard of it, the Iran NIE “not only dominated the Democrats’ debate here in town but also prompted a presidential press conference in response.”
3) Bush couldn’t have seen the report “four years” ago. The NIE was initially completed only a year ago, thus Bush couldn’t have had “four years” to see the report. While the intelligence community did eventually learn that Iran shut down its nuclear program four years ago, that knowledge didn’t come to the intelligence community until this past summer.
So, in one sentence, a confused Huckabee managed to compound his cluelessness over the NIE and confirmed once again his “ignorance of the news of the day.”
Transcript:
SHUSTER: From my years in Arkansas when I saw him. We didn’t talk much about foreign policy when you were first governor, I don’t think we talked about it at all. This week I think there was an exam of that a lot of us in the media glommed on to and that was apparently you didn’t know about the National Intelligence Estimate story. Your staff took responsibility, saying they should have briefed you.
But it gets to the idea that being governor of Arkansas is not necessarily best sort of foreign policy experience and that something that I think a lot of your critics are aiming at your direction. How do you respond to them?
HUCKABEE: Well, I don’t blame my staff. It is a situation where a report was released at 10:00 in the morning, the president hadn’t seen it in four years and I’m supposed to see it four hours later.
There were 16 different agencies involved in accumulating the NIE report. Many of those agencies had classified documents. Nobody’s seen, I guess except the president all of the classified information. There was a section of the report that was declassified. I was in a wall to wall, nonstop campaign because guys like you were trailing me with cameras and microphones all day on the trail.
We sat down to dinner and it was a gottcha question. OK, have you seen the report that was released this morning? And I wanted to say no because you guys have been with me all day, you know what I have been doing.
SCARBOROUGH: And let me say this, for people that haven’t run a campaign before, and I was only ran a little campaign every couple of years running for Congress. But a gubernatorial campaign or a senate campaign. You go nonstop. And a lot of times, you wake up the next morning, you are like oh my God, that happened.
I agree with you Governor, in the fact, the second I saw the story, total gotcha story.
Let’s move on.
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Nice excuses, Huck. And the Titanic wasn’t in the shipping lanes.
December 6th, 2007 at 12:54 pmMike Huckabee is quickly learning that the frontrunner’s life isn’t always an easy one. After first brushing off questions Tuesday about his creationist beliefs, the former Arkansas Governor went on to display complete ignorance of the new National Intelligence Estimate on Iran now dominating the news and debate in Washington. But while Huckabee might be excused for being a foreign policy neophyte, the former Baptist minister is an old hand when it comes to promoting creationism at the expense of evolution in the nation’s public schools.
For the details, see:
December 6th, 2007 at 12:55 pm“Huckabee Proclaims Ignorance of Iran NIE, Evolution.”
Let’s see:
- Anti-science evolution and climate change denier
- Religious nutcase
- Ill-informed on critical foreign policy issues
- Stumbling and bumbling speaking style
I think we have the hand-picked successor to George W Bush right here!
December 6th, 2007 at 12:56 pmHuckabee believed the NIE stood for Not Interested Enough.
December 6th, 2007 at 12:57 pmHuckabee is waiting to hear the party line before commenting. Got to get those stories straight you know.
December 6th, 2007 at 12:59 pm“The NIE was initially completed only a year ago”
Umm, Matt, you might want to read today’s ThinkFast section. There, you folks linked to an article in today’s New York Times that shows that this claim is 100% false, that the NIE was only recently completed, and that the IPS article is nonsense.
So, you might want to remove that sentence. Even your own Web site has printed evidence that refutes it.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:00 pmTo his credit, Huckleberry was out rafting down the Mississippi when the NIE was released.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:01 pm#7 Are you serious? Huckabee’s explanation was no time with stop after stop to promote himself. Also, pretty cold in that area for rafting right now.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:04 pmHucklebeerry who ???
∞
December 6th, 2007 at 1:04 pmI still can’t believe TP’s thread last week about Huckabee saying God told him Bush should be re elected. Thats what we need another President that God whispers to.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:05 pmHuckabee is unfit for command.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:06 pmHuckabee also could have been aware, if he’s aware of anything, that the conclusion of the NIE has been common knowledge for years. The IAEA, Scott Ritter, and the Iranians themselves have said there is no Iranian nuclear weapons program. The Bushies knew it too, they just kept talking about the “Iranian nuclear program” as if there is no difference between enriched uranium and weapons-grade uranium. Hey, it worked to get us into Iraq.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:07 pmHuckaBOOB.
Geesh. How embarrassing!!
December 6th, 2007 at 1:07 pmtexaslady: And we all know what the diagnosis for hearing voices, especially when one God tells them to do something – Schizophrenia.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:07 pmHuckabee is unfit for command.
Comment by patooty — December 6, 2007 @ 1:06 pm
yeah but “huck” huckabee is one helluva bass player!
December 6th, 2007 at 1:09 pmjust a note…
AK is the abbreviation for Alaska…perhaps you mean R-AR
huckabee is toast. no foreign policy experience and the serial rapist he let out of jail will sink him
December 6th, 2007 at 1:10 pmI’ve never seen Exley so staunchly support the truthfulness of a NYTimes report. Must have gone “libby” or something.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:12 pmSomebody needs to tell Huck that when you’re in a hole, it’s best to stop digging.
It’s also wise to pick up a newspaper every so often. I’m sure that even the USA Today left outside his hotel room door would have said something about it.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:12 pmI still can’t believe TP’s thread last week about Huckabee saying God told him Bush should be re elected. Thats what we need another President that God whispers to.
Comment by texaslady — December 6, 2007 @ 1:05 pm
Whispers? God called him on his cell phone.
Which begs the question – who’s in God’s five?
December 6th, 2007 at 1:14 pmdoes anyone ever wonder why republicans are such idiots. It begs the question; “Are all republicans idiots or are all idiots republicans?”
December 6th, 2007 at 1:14 pmCrooks & Liars have a comment regarding if Presidential Candidates should be pyschologically evaluated along with a physical evaluation. I am beginning to think this might be a good thing. However, just like comments on this thread…everyone sees something different in the same subject.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:14 pm#19 Wow wish my carrier was that good !
December 6th, 2007 at 1:15 pmWell he’s a nice enough guy, with charisma. But not fit to be Presidope.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:16 pmHuckabee has a staff shortage but wouldn’t you think someone would be watching all news channels and the Internet to see what MIGHT be asked of him at his next stop. You know trying to be ahead of the situation, being prepared. Oh, right we are talking Republicans.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:17 pmI’ve never seen Exley so staunchly support the truthfulness of a NYTimes report. Must have gone “libby†or something.
Comment by Menehune — December 6, 2007 @ 1:12 pm
Hey, a drowning man will cling to anything that he thinks will keep him afloat.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:17 pmGolly, another “gotcha” question. Gotcha, Huck, you’ve got zero foreign policy experience.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:17 pmAK = Alaska
December 6th, 2007 at 1:21 pmAR = Arkansas
Has Huckabee, or his staff, found time to read the NIE yet? Perhaps they should invite Bolton over for a cup of tea. He knows everything about everything.
For a timeline of the fiasco, read emptywheel.
http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2007/12/04/nie-timeline-take-three/
December 6th, 2007 at 1:21 pm“huck” huckabee would make a wonderful president
- of our church league.
(gotcha!)
December 6th, 2007 at 1:22 pmLet’s face it. Huck doesn’t even know what an NIE is. And he wants to be the leader of the “Free World!”
NIEs are very important documents for policy makers at the highest levels of the US government. I participated in the preparation of a couple of them years ago when I was at DIA.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:23 pmAlso Huckabee is busy squashing the rumors of pushing a parole board into releasing a rape/murderer who then again raped and murdered.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:25 pmWe don’t need another bible thumping hypocrite who has the brains of a buffoon. Huckabee would be that guy.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:25 pmHyuck, Hyuck, Hyuckabee!
Gomer Pyle in the White House. Now that’s a brilliant idea. Playing Bass
is hardly a prerequisite for office. He’s now shown he lives in a bubble like
Bush. Is this what America needs? Again? I think not. Mike, I’m sure
you’re a nice guy, certainly nicer than the dry drunk in office, but
America needs change. You’re just a new suit in an old habit.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:25 pm“Poster Boy of the new GOP”
what a wonderful development
December 6th, 2007 at 1:27 pmHuck’s exoneration of the rapist is blowing his recent uptick and his campaign right out of the water. The people will continue to reject these pervert-enabling, christofascist hypocrites (another word for GOP) by their vote in 08.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:27 pmIs this going to be the standard response to every question asked of a candidate that the candidate doesn’t have a prepared answer to? Both Bushes have used the “gotcha” question excuse, and now Huckabee’s using it.
I don’t recall Clinton ever saying that. Maybe it’s just a Republican thing.
Why in the world don’t candidates inoculate themselves against “gotcha” questions from the press? It’s not that hard to do, if you have enough smarts to qualify you for higher office in the first place.
1) First, decide what it is that you are reasonably expected to know by the people whose votes you want.
2) Second, make sure you know that.
3) Third, have a staffer whose job it is to keep abreast of national and world news as it happens, and brief you frequently (if you are running a campaign on a shoestring budget, you may have to do this yourself).
4) And fourth, when you are asked something that falls outside what you have decided you are reasonably expected to know (such as who stole third base the most in 1978), respond that you don’t know the answer and do it without apology. You won’t look like a fool — the questioner of a silly question will.
Any candidate following these simple steps won’t find himself in a “gotcha” position.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:27 pmA vote for Huckabee is a vote to make the US into a third world country where science has been obstructed to accommodate the political agenda.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:28 pmSo, you might want to remove that sentence. Even your own Web site has printed evidence that refutes it.
Comment by Exley — December 6, 2007 @ 1:00 pm
Actually, it was completed a year ago, and amended in July. Nice try, spinboy.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:28 pmHuckabee believed the NIE stood for Not Interested Enough.
In Huck’s case, NIE stands for No Intellect Evident.
The guy’s toast. Stick a fork in him. The 29 percenters will split their votes between him and Freddie Thompson — the two biggest GDumbya- wannabes empty-suiters in this bunch of clowns seeking the Republican nomination.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:28 pmAnother president who doesn’t have a clue what’s happening…
Just what America needs
December 6th, 2007 at 1:29 pmmissmolly: All of this makes too much sense for Hillbilly Huckabee. He’s showing his level of ignorance by his comments and lack of knowledge about what NIE even stands for. He’s another GOP loser.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:29 pmLooks like Ron Paul will come out on top of this bunch of losers, whiners and perverts. Well, just as easy to defeat him as any other R.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:29 pmtom: I think The Huck’s now considered to be “well done”.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:29 pmCan’t have someone with Schizophrenia as president (again), anyone who says God is talking to them has big time mental problems, or is just a Sociopath who would lie about just about anything.
Bush/Cheney
Hague Trials ‘09
Buck Fush
December 6th, 2007 at 1:30 pmWho could have predicted the Huckster would trip over his own dick?
December 6th, 2007 at 1:31 pmOh, yeah, and the world is only 6,000 years old. Or is it 6,000 hours??
If God thought Huckabee needed to know about the NIE he’d have called him, he has his cell phone number. God gave Huckabee the same “gift” he gave W, when you don’t know the correct answer just make a joke instead. Apparently it’s the christofascist leadership principle.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:32 pmlefty patriot: Trolls like Exlax try to obfusgate and manipulate the facts. Of course, the NIE report was known by Cheney and Bush over a year ago – it’s public knowledge. If Sy Hersch can allude to it over a year ago in one of his articles, well, duh??? Does Hersch have ESP??
The fact is that Cheney and Bush repressed the report from being made public for one whole year.
Anything they say now is a total lie to cover their asses. When members of the NIE report that they met with Bush/Cheney and provide dates and times, the dismissal of these two liars will be a foregone conclusion.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:32 pmHuckabee, the Bumblebee.
I can see the bumper stickers and t-shirts know, with his head on a fat bee’s body.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:34 pmWe’ve had one schizophrenic clueless leader – we definitely don’t need another.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:34 pmDoes Huckabee remind anyone else of Barney Fife or is it just me and my hyperactive imagination?
December 6th, 2007 at 1:35 pmDon’t stand by and appease Exley, it will only encourage him.
He has to be rooted out manually – dug out like a dandelion root, so that he doesn’t keep growing back.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:35 pmAny candidate following these simple steps won’t find himself in a “gotcha†position.
Comment by missmolly — December 6, 2007 @ 1:27
Ironically Hillary used the “gotcha” position during one of the debates. Can we move her over to the R side now?
December 6th, 2007 at 1:35 pmRumor has it that Huckabee learned everything he knows about the NIE from Exley.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:36 pmAlso Huckabee is busy squashing the rumors of pushing a parole board into releasing a rape/murderer who then again raped and murdered.
Comment by texaslady
Actually, this is incorrect. He was just a rapist before Huckabee worked so diligently to get him released (after receiving personal letters from several other women he raped). He became a rapist/murderer after Huckabee got him released. As far as I am concerned, Huckabee is personally responsible for the final rape/murder. I really don’t think his campaign could survive this knowledge. How can the “family values” voters even think about voting for someone who actively sought the release of a rapist who would likely rape again?
December 6th, 2007 at 1:37 pm#51…Have you never played Dungeons and Dragons? Trolls regenerate completely unless all body parts are burned with fire or acid.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:38 pmSome guy from Arkansas called the Randi Rhodes show yesterday and said the reason Huckabee pardoned the rapist was that the victim was a cousin of Bill Clinton. Couldn’t find any proof of that but that doesn’t ever stop Exley.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:39 pmShuster: “But it gets to the idea that being governor of Arkansas is not necessarily best sort of foreign policy experience and that something that I think a lot of your critics are aiming at your direction. How do you respond to them?”
Is Shuster being literal about Arkansas or being a governor of a state in general? If so, there are 6 U.S. Presidents I can think of off hand whose highest elected office was Governor of a state prior to being elected President: Woodrow Wilson, FDR, Reagan, Carter, Clinton and GW Bush.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:42 pmyou’re right mantastic – let’s elect a tongue-talking snakehandler while we’re at it, too.
quit showing up just to be contrary for its own sake – that’s something only 7-year-old girls are given a free pass on
December 6th, 2007 at 1:43 pmhere’s a good idea for you Mantastic – give Huckabee’s campaign a whole buncha money – k?? then, if you have any left over, give that to Ron Paul.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:45 pmSome guy from Arkansas called the Randi Rhodes show yesterday and said the reason Huckabee pardoned the rapist was that the victim was a cousin of Bill Clinton. Couldn’t find any proof of that but that doesn’t ever stop Exley.
Comment by Shayne
Actually, that was part of it. The biggest reason was that there were several religious leaders who were convinced that the guy was innocent and had been railroaded because of the fact that the young girl (I think she was 17), was a distant relative of Clinton.
While he was actively promoting pardoning this guy, several women who were previously raped by this guy, but the cases never went to trial, wrote personal letters to appeal to Huckabee telling him they were sure he would rape again and this time he might kill to keep from there being a witness. One of the women who wrote to Huckabee was the daughter of a woman this guy raped while the daughter (then 3 years old) was in bed beside her. The only reason why the guy was not charged was because the victim was terrified if she prosecuted him and he got off, that he would come back and do harm to her daughter, as he threatened to do while raping her.
Go to the Huffington Post if you want the latest on this issue. They have the letters these women wrote to Huckabee. BTW, Huckabee has denied ever seeing the letters.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:45 pmFamily Value folks like to believe whatever their leader ie. Church leader, tells them is the truth that way they don’t have to read and research for themselves. Huckabee already has a great story that those bringing up the smear were fired Parole Board members. Maybe so who can say.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:47 pmHuckabee is more far more coherent than anyone running as a Democrat.
Comment by CaptainMantastic
Snicker, giggle, more repukian comedy.
Bush/Cheney
Hague Trials ‘09
Buck Fush
December 6th, 2007 at 1:48 pmJust like Pvt.ManSpastic said– anytime you elect a governor from Arkansas, you just end up having to impeach them. So let’s Skip over Hucklebee and save ourselves the trouble.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:48 pmOh, please, please please, you Repugnicants, nominate this assclown…
December 6th, 2007 at 1:48 pmHuckabee already has a great story that those bringing up the smear were fired Parole Board members. Maybe so who can say.
Comment by texaslady
Well, since the people who are contradicting his version are not fired parole board members, I guess that makes his excuse a big lie, doesn’t it.
If you want the whole story, go to the Huffington Post.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:52 pmGuess he isn’t as quick on his feet as he should be…now where have I heard that before…
December 6th, 2007 at 1:53 pmCappy – we don’t need a story – huck takes care of lookin’ bad all by hisself.
the “Left Behind” crowd may have given him a bump of late, but that’s all the poor boy’s got, aside from his very own Willie Horton, who he helped to rape and kill that woman.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:01 pmOh, yeah, almost forgot – then he lied about helping that man rape and kill that woman, and got caught in the lie right away.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:03 pmHe also had some ….er, “ethical” difficulties during his governorship; he and his wife spent some fancy money from dubious sources.
Huckie – despite his “awwww, shucks” mein – is NOT a nice guy.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:03 pmOr are you saying that the rapist/murderer was a democrat plant, trying to work a “gotcha” on poor ol’ Huck???? If so, that’s pretty batty – like those moonbat conspiracy theories at which you like to direct your selective skepticism.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:05 pmcome on cappy, cry “no fair!” for us.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:05 pm#72…voting for Huck is a really bad idea. He could be raptured away at any moment leaving the US leaderless. We need a law saying that both the President and the VP can’t be born-agains–just too risky for the country.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:08 pmLet’s move on.
Comment by CaptainMantastic
Sounds good to me. Move on Captain. We have no use for you here. What you post is mostly gibberish anyway.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:17 pmIf you’re gonna try to make someone look bad, try to come up with stories that actually make them look bad.
Comment by CaptainMantastic
Oh I see, it doesn’t make someone look bad that they got a rapist out of jail knowing there was a high probability he would do it again? And then he not only raped again, he also killed his victim. That says a lot about your character.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:20 pmIf you’re gonna try to make someone look bad, try to come up with stories that actually make them look bad.
Comment by CaptainMantastic
Hmmm… Republicans seemed to think it made Dukakis look bad in ‘88… maybe they’ve had a change of heart since then…
December 6th, 2007 at 2:25 pmIronically Hillary used the “gotcha†position during one of the debates. Can we move her over to the R side now?
Comment by Shayne — December 6, 2007 @ 1:35 pm
OK by me — I’ve often thought that’s where she really belongs.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:28 pmIronically Hillary used the “gotcha†position during one of the debates. Can we move her over to the R side now?
Comment by Shayne — December 6, 2007 @ 1:35 pm
OK by me — I’ve often thought that’s where she really belongs.
Comment by missmolly — December 6, 2007 @ 2:28 pm
Oh, please. She’s practically a Communist, didn’t you know? And a lesbian!
December 6th, 2007 at 2:30 pmI’d rather have spinach in my teeth than blatant disregard for a woman who was raped and murdered as the direct result of some hickabilly governor’s poor judgement.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:38 pmI’m pretty sure her family wouldn’t find your remarks very “cutesy”, or “witty”.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:39 pmAnd what’s laughable is the commentator states that many are wondering if experience as the Governor of Arkansas affords adequate experience to handle foreign policy. Bill Clinton anyone?
Comment by CaptainMantastic — December 6, 2007 @ 1:41 pm
Americans like to elect governors as President — four out of our last five Presidents (Bush 43, Clinton, Reagan, and Carter) were governors of their states prior to being elected President (the exception was Bush 41). None of these four had ever served in a federal government position (either elected or appointed), and they all had little or no foreign policy experience before becoming President.
Up to now, Americans didn’t really care if their candidates had foreign policy experience. They seemed to either prefer candidates who had executive experience (such as a state governor would have) or they preferred candidates who they saw as Washington outsiders.
So where are all the governors in the 2008 presidential race? Only Romney, Huckabee, and Richardson are or have been governors — everybody else (except Giuliani, who was a mayor) comes from the U.S. Senate or the U.S. House of Representatives, where knowledge of foreign matters runs a bit higher than it does on a state level.
Maybe foreign policy is a bigger priority with the electorate these days.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:47 pmFrom the looks of his picture, a second cousin, once removed, of Dr. Spock? Beam me up, Huckabee…
December 6th, 2007 at 2:48 pmOh look – coldhardlump is over here too, trying to sell the corn kernels he found in Dubbie’s morning stool.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:50 pmAnd just when we though Exley was the most annoying troll CHL and Cap’n Crunch are here sounding even dumber.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:55 pmi don’t have to – go eat your corn in a quiet corner somewhere.
December 6th, 2007 at 3:13 pmhard talk aside, capt. – you’re at least a good sport – there’s no way I would (were I allowed to, and I wouldn’t be) hang around a Righty blog soaking up whatever abuse those wackos would muster.
i guess that makes it a good thing that the righty blogs won’t allow lefty commenters – eliminates the temptation.
December 6th, 2007 at 3:27 pmOle Hetero Joe…gonna stand tall for his christian bro………….cause that is what they do ………….blame everyone for their lack of knowledge…
Remember, it was a Jesus FReak that got us into the mess we are in.
December 6th, 2007 at 3:42 pmI know a lot of people who feel the same way you do, Capt.. My brother-in-law is among them. Most of the concerns of his that make him lean right are baseless though. Despite what the NRA p.r. people want him to believe, it’s just not true that the 2nd amendment is in jeopardy, nor is it true he’d ever be out of a job to make room for a minority, nor is it true anyone is going to tax him out of a home.
Fact is, this country has done little but lean to the right for 30 years, in spite of the “liberal boogeyman” stories that go around. On a bike, if you don’t lean to the left sometimes, you end up going in a circle, and it really does look like we’ve ended up back at Viet Nam, doesn’t it???
December 6th, 2007 at 5:07 pmThe latest on Huckabee and his rapist from the HP:
Directly contradicting Mike Huckabee’s claims, his former senior aide tells the Huffington Post that, as governor of Arkansas, Huckabee indeed told the state’s parole board that he supported the release of a convicted rapist.
The senior aide, Olan W. “Butch” Reeves, personally attended a controversial parole board meeting with Huckabee in Oct. 1996.
“The clear impression that I came away with from the meeting was that he favored Dumond’s release,” Reeves said, referring to convicted rapist Wayne Dumond. “And I can understand why board members would believe that to be the case.”
This stands in stark contrast to Huckabee’s assertion, repeated at a press conference today that he “did not ask [the board] to do anything.” When asked directly about trying to influence the board, Huckabee responded: “No. I did not. Let me categorically say that I did not.”
But, according to Reeves, Huckabee actually told the parole board members that the prison sentence meted out to Dumond for his rape conviction was “outlandish” and “way out of bounds for his crime.” Huckabee believed there “was something nefarious” about the how the state’s criminal justice system had treated Dumond, Reeves said.
Reeves’s admission comes as a surprise since the interview was encouraged by Huckabee’s presidential campaign. Reeves served as chief counsel to then-Gov. Huckabee until 2003, and was subsequently appointed by Huckabee as chairman of the Arkansas Workers’ Compensation Commission. Reeves has donated to Huckabee’s presidential campaign.
December 6th, 2007 at 5:15 pmI hope you and others aren’t offended by my being here. You are helping me to become a more informed and discerning person.
Comment by CaptainMantastic
I don’t know about the others, but I am offended by your being here since you simply fling feces on the wall and don’t contribute anything worthwhile. And I don’t buy your “I’ve learned my lesson” or that we are helping you in any way. You are now and always have been a troll. I have no idea why TP let you post again. You earned your banning the first time.
Right leaning blogs don’t ban someone after they have proven that they are nothing more than a troll who contributes zippo to the debate. Right leaning blogs ban you after the first or second time you disagree with something they said. Right wingers are not up to debating their views, all they want is people who will go along with the crowd of lemmings.
December 6th, 2007 at 5:20 pmComment by CaptainMantastic — December 6, 2007 @ 4:00 pm
Most of the time, I am not as adament in my positions as I lead on.
And this is one of the things that bothers me about your posting here. You are being dishonest.
I want you to know that I work with mostly conservatives, and when I’m with them I argue for gay rights, freedom of religion, more diplomacy, even offer the progressive view on climate change.
So this is what you do with everyone. You play the Devil’s Advocate, but you don’t tell anyone you are doing it. This is deception, in case you don’t know it. When you trick people, as you are doing, you are making them out to be fools. That you learn from the encounter is utterly beside the point. You get no credit for learning at the expense of others when it is totally unnecessary.
The best way to do what you are trying to do is to be honest up front and then pose your challange or question. To do it your way makes you an unwelcome troll who is trying to stir up trouble.
I hope you and others aren’t offended by my being here. You are helping me to become a more informed and discerning person.
From the responses here to your posts a number of people here ARE offended. I am one of them. Offer a sincere apology and change your approach, and I for one will let the past go. Until then IMHO you are an unwanted troll.
December 6th, 2007 at 5:27 pmI canc’t believe Huckabee’ss actually leading the Republic can side. I understand how in Iowa, conservative country. He’s leading b/c they really care about morality and the bible but nationally he’s leading the republicans which is just astounding. Supposudelly they care about National Security and yet their supporting the least experience and least knowledgeable of the bunch. It just shows how skewed their way of thinking is.
December 6th, 2007 at 6:09 pm(captain, i think it’s your stubborn refusal to allow actual facts to lead you to reliable conclusions based on those facts that people find so annoying)
December 6th, 2007 at 7:17 pmSurprised he doesn’t know everything that’s going on since he’s got “god’s” phone number on speed dial.
December 6th, 2007 at 7:39 pm“does anyone ever wonder why republicans are such idiots. It begs the question; “Are all republicans idiots or are all idiots republicans?â€
Comment by macd”
All idiots are not republicans, but all republicans, and especially Huckleberry, only get their “news” from Fox News. It’s so obvious.
December 6th, 2007 at 10:24 pmSorry Biggie – Capt. Dubbie is takin the S.S. GOP down with him.
It’s real – check the stats and the headlines.
Even the military is majority D now.
Nuthin you can say can change that.
December 7th, 2007 at 5:11 pmTime after time the Huckster proves he’s nothing but a silver tongued con artist whose lies hold up only as long as it takes him to draw in his next breath.
Paroled Dumond by letting the board sign their names to it, brutal taxes, amnesty for illegals, took a federalist approach on abortion until he realized the pro-life group might vote more for someone demanding a Constitutional amendment…which he’s already stated could never pass and has not the first clue what foreign relations are let alone how to lead them…He’s a mid-level manager for cryin’ out loud.
These are all issues he has blatantly lied directly to us and/or reinvented himself simply for votes.
It doesn’t matter which side of the aisle you’re on in this race, when this guy is urinating on our heads and telling us it’s raining we need to be shoving an umbrella where his sun doesn’t shine.
December 7th, 2007 at 10:18 pm